Miri diocese gets new bishop

The 47-year old bishop Ng will lead the Church in an area of 600,000 people, which includes 80,000 Catholics. The diocese has 16 priests and 20 religious.

Malaysia

Nov 01 2013, 10:00 AM

Bishop Richard Ng

Pope Francis on Oct. 30, 2013 appointed Father Richard Ng as the bishop of Miri diocese in Malaysia, accepting the resignation of its Bishop Anthony Lee Kok Hin, who served the diocese for 36 years.

The 47-year old bishop Ng will lead the Church in an area of 600,000 people, which includes 80,000 Catholics. The diocese has 16 priests and 20 religious.

Bishop Hin, who led the diocese for 36 years since 1977, resigned upon reaching the canonical age limit of 75 years.

The bishops-elect was born in Kuching, Malaysia in 1966 and was ordained a priest in 1995.

He holds a licentiate in sacred scriptures from the Biblicum, Rome, and has served in a number of roles, including parish vicar of the cathedral of Kuching, lecturer in sacred scriptures in the major seminary of Kuching, and director of the archdiocesan Commission for Social Communications.

He is currently rector of the major seminary of Kuching.

Catholics here find their roots in the ministry of the Mill Hill Missionaries, who started schools all throughout Miri.

The Vicariate of Miri was established in 1959 and in the following year Mill Hill missioner Father Anthony D. Galvin was consecrated its first bishop.

Approximately 6 years later, on January 2, 1966, Father Anthony Lee, the first priest from Miri, was ordained.

Miri Vicariate was made a diocese in 1976 and on May 20, 1977, Father Lee became its first bishop of Miri diocese.